A West Lothian butcher proved he’s a cut above when his business struck gold in the prestigious Smithfield Awards.

John Lawson Butchers, of East Main Street, Uphall, also achieved six of the best, with gold awarded to its Beef & Caramelised Onion Sausage, A Taste of Honey, “Taste the Garlic” Burger, Canadian Style Maple Bacon, Pulled Pork & Black Pudding Pie, and Christmas Vension Pies.

It proved to be a great week for John, who learned the day after the awards that he had also won the Best Butcher in Scotland title in the 2014 Butchers Shop of the Year Awards, run by the Meat Trades Journal.

A total of 479 products from 54 Q butchers nationwide, virtually half of the national membership, were entered for the eight categories in this year’s Smithfield Awards, the annual national product evaluation competition.

They were judged by independent panels of food and meat industry experts.

Awards were announced and presented at the Butchers Hall in Smithfield, London, ancestral home of the Q Guild, by Matthew Fort, food and drink editor at the Guardian for over a decade, author of several award-winning books on food, and expert judge on the popular TV series, ‘The Great British Menu’.

Matthew said: “I’ve spent many hours watching butchers going about their business and every time there’s something to be learnt.

“I’ve never had a serious conversation with a butcher where I haven’t learned something. I think the future can be extremely positive for Q Guild butchers; the emphasis on quality, precision and wisdom – you can’t put too high a price on that.”

Q Guild national chairman, West Yorkshire butcher Brindon Addy, added: “Smithfield Awards are among the meat industry’s most esteemed and cherished accolades, recognising and rewarding both product quality and innovation, at the same time reflecting the skills continually demonstrated by our members - Great British butchers one and all.”